Featured

Inspired by the works of Arthur C. Clarke, J.G. Ballard and Philip K. Dick, Infinite Summer sees Michael Lovett’s NZCA Lines “marry sci-fi futurism to personal intimacies” to produce what must surely be one of the funkiest apocalyptic concept albums of all time. Indeed, also featuring former Ash guitarist Charlotte Hatherley and drummer Sarah Jones (Hot Chip, New Young Pony Club), the follow-up to 2012’s self-titled debut may center on […]

Named after a term used for trained assassins he heard in a documentary on espionage, Skilled Mechanics sees trip-hop trailblazer Tricky assemble his own killer team for the most collaborative studio effort of his lengthy career. Some of those on board are no stranger to the world of Adrian Thaws, including regular vocalist Francesca Belmonte who lends her sultry tones to the eerie synth-balladry of “We Begin,” drummer Luke Harris […]

As you’d expect from a founding member of studious classical-electro outfit Clean Bandit, British-Ugandan vocalist/rapper Love Ssega certainly isn’t short on brainpower. Born and raised in South London, the 24-year-old graduated from Cambridge University with a degree in Mechanical Engineering, then made the brave decision to quit the aforementioned Grammy winners to finish his Ph.D. in laser sensing. Love Ssega (real name Ssegawa-Ssekintu Kiwanuka) is just as cultured as he […]

Judging by all the pre-release talk of shunning EDM, steering dance music back into a proper direction and making a piece of art, you’d expect Steve Angello’s second solo LP, Wild Youth, to be something of a game-changer. So it’s slightly baffling to hear that the Stockholm DJ has delivered the kind of unadventurous, generic and largely forgettable record he appears to be rallying against. Indeed, featuring guest appearances from […]

David Bowie, arguably one of the most influential figures in modern music for the past 40-plus years, died on Sunday, Jan. 10 after a battle with cancer. He was 69. While previous rumors of his death in years past were greatly exaggerated, the news has been confirmed by Bowie’s representatives and his son Duncan Jones (via Twitter). The following statement appears on Bowie’s official Facebook page: “David Bowie died peacefully […]

So after crowning Jamie xx’s “Loud Places” and Bob Moses’ Days Gone By as the greatest single and album of 2015 respectively, we now switch our attention to what we can expect to hear over the next twelve months in the world of dance/electronica. The first big album out of the blocks this year is Moth (Jan 22), the third album from alt-pop duo Chairlift, which judging by its first […]

Pop Music

Chances are you know Tyler Hilton for something other than music, although Forget the Storm is actually his third full-length release. Many people know Hilton for his role as musician Chris Keller on One Tree Hill, or as young Elvis in the Johnny Cash biopic Walk the Line (he does look the part, doesn’t he?) But he doesn’t just play a musician on TV or the movies; Tyler Hilton is a […]

Here’s a fun trip down memory lane for you: remember Genesis? You know, before Phil Collins was just Phil Collins? “Land Of Confusion” is one of Genesis’ classic hits, from their album Invisible Touch, and it’s a perfect example of 80’s rock (synths, drum machines, the works). Most of us who lived in that time remember the video (below) particularly for its use of puppets depicting not only the Genesis […]

So after lots of teasers, Madonna’s new release MDNA, her 13th studio album, has finally dropped. And apparently it’s already dropped into the hands of many anticipating fans, having broken pre-sale records on iTunes. So let’s start with props where they’re due. First of all—Madonna and her crew certainly know how to market their product. From her featured appearance at the Superbowl halftime show, to soliciting help from modern divas […]

ITunes and the Internet have been recently abuzz with the release of Justin Bieber’s new single “Boyfriend,” a teaser to his upcoming album Believe. Not only is the single poised to shatter Bieber’s previous weekly download sales record (by more than double), but the song has already generated significant radio airplay which is certain to land him a respectable debut on the Billboard Hot 100. Bieber, like so many teen […]

Just when you thought boy bands had gone the way of the dinosaur…there’s Up All Night, the debut recording from One Direction. One Direction, the UK’s latest incarnation of the N-SYNC-esque version of boy-band pop (complete with the occasional New Kids On the Block falsetto riff), would seem at first glance to be an unlikely pick to start off at the top of the US sales charts. In my humble […]

Birdy is a name many people don’t know yet in the United States, but gauging from the response of people in the UK, it’s only a matter of time before she’s a household name. Birdy (known to friends and family as Jasmine van den Bogaerde) is not yet 16 years old, but her piano-based folk pop has already won over many fans across the pond. Her rise to fame began by […]

The pop-star journey for vocalist Kelly Clarkson (American Idol’s first winner) has been a roller-coaster ride, to put it mildly. After seeing some initial successes with hits like “Breakaway,” “Because of You” and “Since U Been Gone,” it started to feel for awhile that the idol’s veneer was starting to fade. Even though Clarkson continued to chart with singles like “Never Again” and “I Do Not Hook Up,” there was this […]

The music of UK indie-pop dance duo The Ting Tings is basic. Simple. Redundant. Uninventive. Predictable. Redundant. (Oh, wait, I said redundant already, didn’t I?) Oh. And it’s also some of the catchiest stuff on the market. The Ting Tings (a.k.a. Jules de Martino and Katie White) seem to have capitalized on the concept that sometimes less is more. They’ve basically combined jangly guitars, a solid dance beat, and Katie White’s […]

If you’ve watched any television at all the past few months, or listened to the radio, you’ve probably heard the almost annoyingly catchy anthem “We Are Young” by indie-pop/rock outfit fun.—the first single off their new release Some Nights. The single, which features a cameo by Janelle Monae, [URL: http://www.jmonae.com] recently enjoyed placement on a Chevrolet Superbowl commercial, and the cast of Glee recently covered it, as well. Not to […]

So Lana Del Rey is a name being tossed around a lot lately—and not in the best way. Like many modern performers, Lana Del Rey (the stage name/femme fatale alter ego of singer Lizzie Grant) has been building a major fan base the past few years via the Internet. But the January 2012 release of her record Born to Die has received tepid reviews so far from the critics, who seem […]

This was a tough year to win a Grammy Award, if you were not Adele. Thanks to her record breaking sophomore release 21, Adele swept this year’s awards, winning in every category in which she was nominated, including Album of the Year, Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and three others—six in all. Although these weren’t Adele’s first Grammys (she won two in 2009, including Best New Artist), […]